LYNN HAVEN — Shortly after he tapped in his putt on the 18th green to cement a successful defense of his Sherman Invitational title, Chase Seiffert signed his winning scorecard.

With his left hand.

It was symbolic in a way as Seiffert, who plays golf right-handed, basically turned the 86th Sherman into a sleight of hand when the 54-hole amateur golf tournament played to its conclusion Sunday at Panama Country Club.

As in; now you see a four-shot lead, now you don’t.

But as it turned out, the ambidextrous Florida State senior knew all along under which shell the championship was located. A three-over-par 75 and total of 214 was enough to win by two strokes over Matt Johnson and Mike Riley, but even the winning margin vastly undermined a monumental struggle.

It began on the first tee Sunday when Seiffert opened with a double bogey on the 446-yard par 4. Incredibly, he duplicated the double bogey on the 387-yard par-4 No. 2.

His comfort zone in shambles, the 22-year-old somehow pulled himself together to play the ensuing 16 holes in one-under-par for his second consecutive Sherman crown.

“My ball was going left, it was just some weird glitch,” Seiffert said of his uncharacteristic start. “I didn’t let it get to me. Was able to adjust.”

Johnson, a two-time Sherman winner who was second last May when Seiffert set a tournament scoring record, started the final round four shots behind Seiffert and immediately picked up two strokes on the first hole. When Johnson bogeyed No.2 he was one behind.

He never could get over the top.

“I was shocked, I almost picked up three on the first hole,” Johnson said. “I got it to even (for the tournament) several times, but I just couldn’t quite get it in the hole.

“I had every opportunity to win, I gave myself chances. When this sinks in I think I might have a hard time sleeping tonight.”

Riley, who coached Seiffert in high school as head coach of the Mosley golf team, was six behind when the final round began. He said his group, that went off in front of the final foursome of Seiffert, Johnson, Brandon Shelley and Dillon Humphrey, was well aware what was unfolding behind them.

“I had a friend texting me,” Riley said. “We all knew what was going on.”

Somehow Seiffert regrouped, and when he got it to three-under for the tournament by No. 16 had a three-shot lead on Riley and four-shot lead on Johnson.

“It’s a positive for me,” Seiffert said. “My short game got me around the golf course.”

Gusting wind made club selection a factor on a number of holes, those playing downwind as well as those dead into it.

“This was as different a golf course as I’ve ever played here,” Seiffert said. “I just figured I needed pars the final two holes, but on (the par-3) 17 I hit what I thought was a perfect tee shot in the middle of the green and flew the green by 10 yards.

“It was crazy. On some holes you needed two to three clubs extra.”

Riley was one-over-par for the tournament when he teed off and said he never got into the red numbers.

“Even (par) was as low as I went,” he said. “I had a putt for an eagle that spit out at 14 that I figured I needed to have a chance.”

Having survived the Sherman, where he was nine under after 27 holes and seven over the final 27, Seiffert tees off today at Camp Creek to begin the qualifying process for the U.S. Open.

His 13th-ranked FSU golf team will host the South Regional this weekend, and the NCAA nationals begin May 28 outside of Atlanta.

A third straight Sherman title won’t be possible for Seiffert, who plans to turn professional sometime in June.